I've been comparing every consumer drone I've flown with the DJI Phantom 3 Professional. The reasoning is simple: to this point, the Phantom 3 is the best consumer drone I've flown. Others have promised to better it, but I've yet to see one that equals it.

That may have changed today. I got my first hands-on time with the 3D Robotics Solo. It's a small drone, with a more angled look than the Phantom, and a design that has it sitting a little lower on the ground. There's no integrated camera, but GoPro integration is tighter and more polished than I've seen on other drones that don't have their own camera.

The GoPro snaps into the gimbal with ease—and without tools—which is a plus when compared with the thumbscrew and cable that you need to connect when flying with a model like the Yuneec Typhoon G. The remote control doesn't have a built-in viewing screen for video—you still need to use your smartphone, tethered to the remote via Wi-Fi, to see a feed from the camera. The app does let you control video recording and image capture—that's something other GoPro-compatible drones don't offer, as 3D Robotics is the only dronemaker to which GoPro has opened that functionality at this point. Full control over camera settings is coming in a future update.

In the air, the Solo is just as stable and responsive as Phantom 3 models. It's nimble, rising up from the ground with ease (take-off and landing are fully automated), and it handled like a champ on a crisp late Autumn day with the wind blowing lightly. The standard flight controls are there—the left stick controls altitude and yaw, while the right moves the drone in any direction through the air—but there are also a number of automated modes built into the aircraft.

The Solo supports Selfie mode, which can pull away from a close shot to reveal the world around you (or vice versa) with the ability to change the speed, distance flown, and change in altitude. There's also Follow Me, which will keep track of you on the ground as you move from place to place—just make sure that the Solo isn't going to run into obstacles in the process.

Orbit is a feature that we're seeing built into more drones. The Solo flies in a circle with a radius that you set, when orbiting. You can adjust any of these parameters while it flies (and adjust the gimbal), but the lens will always face the point around which the aircraft orbits. I flew a few test orbits at a park in Brooklyn and found that the motion was quite smooth, and there was no sign of propellers or landing gear in the video footage.

The final smart flight mode is Cable Cam. It allows you to set two points in space, using the remote's A button to set the first and the B button to set the second. The Solo will fly between them at a speed you can set and adjust. If the aircraft is facing a different direction at the start point and endpoint it will turn as it flies. All the while you can adjust the gimbal as you see fit. It's another tool that allows filmmakers to concentrate on the shot.

A lever on the left of the remote controls the tilt of the gimbal. It's quite responsive—there's no noticeable lag in moving it and seeing the camera move on your phone's screen. I was shooting with a GoPro Hero4 Black recording 2.7K footage at 60fps and, while I didn't let the drone fly too far away from me, the video never stuttered or lagged. (I'll perform range tests when the Solo comes in for review.) The representatives from 3D Robotics did state that there is slightly more lag in the video feed when recording footage at 4K.

The remote also has two buttons and a control wheel at the top right. They allow you to set two angles for the gimbal, and toggle between them at the push of either button. A control wheel between them sets the speed of the automatic adjustment. It's a plus for filmmakers who are looking to capture dynamic aerial shots with camera movement.

And that's where the strength of the Solo lies. It's a little too early for me to say that it's as good (or better) as far as range and stability goes when compared with the Phantom—I'll need more than 25 minutes in the air to make that call. But my first impression is very positive. The Solo is stable, and while I did notice a little bit of shake in some of my footage, it was only for a fleeting few moments as I flew into the wind—that's not unexpected. And while competitor DJ has worked to add automated camera flight modes to its Phantom 3 line, the Solo's Smart Shot modes are aimed a bit more squarely at videographers—I'm looking forward to getting it out to some of my favorite flying spots to see what kind of footage I can capture using the more advanced camera moves.

We've requested a Solo and hope to get it in for more extensive testing soon, with a detailed review to follow. It's on sale for $999.95 without a gimbal, but you'll want to buy the $1,399.95, which includes the 3-axis gimbal for GoPro cameras, to get the most out of the drone.

About the Author

Senior digital camera analyst for the PCMag consumer electronics reviews team, Jim Fisher is a graduate of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he concentrated on documentary video production. Jim's interest in photography really took off when he borrowed his father's Hasselblad 500C and light meter in 2007. He honed his writing skills at re... See Full Bio

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